


Day 04: Books

by xsilverdreamsx



Series: 30 Day Winter Challenge [4]
Category: No. 6 (Anime & Manga)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-08
Updated: 2013-01-08
Packaged: 2017-11-24 04:03:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/630170
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xsilverdreamsx/pseuds/xsilverdreamsx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Day 04: Books</p>
            </blockquote>





	Day 04: Books

**Author's Note:**

> For the [30 day winter fic challenge](http://heckyeahtumblrchallenges.tumblr.com/post/35486362064/winter-drawing-writing-challenge)
> 
>  **Disclaimer** : Characters are not mine, am playing in the sandbox, etc etc.

Shion dreams.

He dreams of rows and rows of books, weathered and worn by the years, covered in dust and fraying at the edges. The musty scent tickles his nose, and he sneezes, surprising himself by how loud it sounds to his ears.

Fingers tracing the spines, Shion pauses at one of the volumes. It should be familiar, he thinks, but the name dances at the edge of his awareness, as if taunting him.

Curious, he pulls the book out from the shelf. Under the flickering glow of the oil lamp, he opens the cover. Printed across the first page, with the ink partially faded from age, is the title that had eluded his consciousness earlier.

 _Ophelia_.

A single word, but it’s enough to open up the floodgates, letting the memories wash over him, filling his mind with sight and sound and touch as he _remembers_.

A rat, a pair of grey eyes, a haunting song filled with aching loneliness.

A searing pain as he hovers close to death, then someone’s hand that soothes over the ache.

A waltz, guided by the simple steps and the low hum of _one two three, one two three_.

A soft kiss, goodbye.

With a gasp, Shion opens his eyes.

It takes him a second, or perhaps several, to shake off the remnants of sleep from his mind, before he remembers where he is.

The harsh reality sets in; he’s back in No. 6, in his room, and he can hear the quiet sounds of his mother bustling about in the kitchen downstairs.

There are no shelves laden with old books, no warm body to wake up next to, no voice to greet him and sing to him, no warm hands to grasp his own and pull him into an impromptu dance.

Not yet, he thinks, getting out of bed and searching for his boots.

Not yet, he tells himself, as he changes into warmer clothes, pulling on his coat.

But soon, he says out loud, as he makes his way quietly down the stairs and out of the house, heading towards the edge of the city.

Soon.

*

“I didn’t think you would return, Your Majesty.” Although the title is mocking, there’s no malice in the greeting he receives as Shion steps into the room.

Shion glances around, noting how little has changed since the last night they had spent together here. The shelves still hold hundreds of books, all filled with knowledge and dreams and of worlds beyond, and the old piano is still on the other side of the room, the cover opened to reveal the yellowed keys.

“I had to return a book,” Shion says, holding up the copy of Ophelia that he had slipped into his bag so many months ago, before he had left. It had been a sentimental act, even though there was no guarantee that they would survive that day.

Acknowledging his excuse, Nezumi bows a little, his grey eyes glittering with mirth. “Well then, ” he says, when he straightens up, before taking several steps forward, bringing him closer to Shion. “I suppose we have a lot of catching up to do.”

This time, it’s a gentle kiss that welcomes him home.


End file.
